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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention broadly relates to telecommunication devices, and more particularly, to a telephone instrument that automatically captures and stores numbers received in DTMF (dual tone multi-frequency) audio tone format.
2. Description of the Related Art
Telephone communication has seen a phenomenal growth since its inception because of its extreme usefulness in today""s world. It is hard, and almost impossible, to conceive a world without telephones. Telephones have almost become an integral part of a civilized society. Various advances in telephone technology have catered to human communication needs and provided many useful features in modem phones. Such features include, for example, the volume control feature, the speed-dial memory feature, the call HOLD feature, the call FORWARD feature, the MUTE feature, the SPEAKERPHONE feature, the TONE/PULSE dialing option etc. Compact sizes and feature-packed designs of modem cordless telephone handsets as well as modem wireless telephone handsets are direct results of advances in integrated circuit fabrication technology. Furthermore, compact designs of many ancillary devices have also allowed their integration into telephones. For example, some modem telephones come equipped with a built-in answering machine or a built-in pager or a calling name display unit (which displays, e.g., the name and telephone number of the calling party).
It is worth noting, however, that human ingenuity still fails, in numerous situations, to solve some of the simple problems associated with the fruits of the technological advances it was employed to bring forth. For example, as mentioned above, a modern telephone device greatly simplifies human communication needs. However, the same telephone device becomes a mute spectator when its operator helplessly tries to locate a paper and a pen or pencil to jot down a telephone number spoken by the opposite party during conversation or heard on a telephone answering service. This problem is exacerbated when that telephone device is a wireless telephone, e.g., a car phone. The car driver, who is also usually the operator of the car phone, has to concentrate not only on the road, but also on the conversation with the other party. The situation worsens when the driver has to search for a writing pad/paper and a pen just to write down a few digits while driving the car and conversing with the other party on the car phone. A car phone is not typically equipped with a speakerphone. However, even if a speakerphone is available or an optional car kit allows for hands-free operation, the driver may still need to search for a pen or a paper. Furthermore, a stick-shift car (i.e., a car with standard transmission as opposed to a car with automatic transmission) may pose additional problems to the driver struggling to take care of a number of tasks simultaneously. In such a situation, the benefits of a car phone (e.g., its compact size, its ease of use, etc.) may simply fail to prevent a potential hazard (e.g., an accident) from taking place.
To avoid above-mentioned situation, the legislators may strive to restrict the usage of wireless phones to non-driving automobile occupants or to people who are not operating an automobile, e.g., pedestrians. However, this may not be a preferable solution for wireless service providers and users alike.
It is therefore desirable to address the problem of taking down messages and call back numbers, especially while driving.
The present invention contemplates a method and apparatus for receiving, recording and providing to a telephone user information, such as a telephone number provided by another party to the telephone conversation, without requiring the telephone user to disrupt the phone conversation, for example, by searching for a paper and pen. In one embodiment, the present invention is a wireless telephone that includes a receiver to receive a DTMF (dual tone multi-frequency) audio tone transmitted to the wireless telephone during a conversation mode of the wireless telephone, and a DTMF decoder coupled to the receiver to decode the DTMF audio tone and to responsively generate a decoded signal representing dialed information corresponding to the DTMF audio tone during the conversation mode of the wireless telephone. The wireless telephone may be an analog wireless telephone or a digital wireless telephone.
In another embodiment, the present invention is a telephone instrument that includes a receiver to receive a DTMF audio tone transmitted to the telephone instrument during a conversation mode thereof, a DTMF decoder coupled to the receiver to decode the DTMF audio tone and to responsively generate a decoded signal representing a telephone keypad entry conveyed through the DTMF audio tone during the conversation mode of the telephone instrument, a control unit coupled to the DTMF decoder to determine the telephone keypad entry from the decoded signal during the conversation mode of the telephone instrument, and a memory coupled to the control unit to store during the conversation mode of the telephone instrument the telephone keypad entry therein when the telephone keypad entry is a digit.
The present invention also contemplates a method of receiving numerical data in a telephone. The method includes the telephone receiving the numerical data in a DTMF form during a conversation mode thereof, the telephone decoding the numerical data received in the DTMF form during the conversation mode thereof, and the telephone storing therein the numerical data during the conversation mode thereof.
A telephone embodying the present invention thus captures for its user the telephone numbers or other numerical information transmitted by the opposite party in the DTMF form during a conversation, without requiring the user to disrupt the conversation, e.g., by looking for a paper and pen. Thus, the user may not need to personally remember or write down the telephone number or other numerical information received while the user is on phone. The user may also place a call to the captured telephone number by directly dialing that number from its storage location in the phone, i.e., without the user manually entering the complete number.